Mountain Biking Hits Laguna Seca
NorCal Race 2 (Sunday March 11, 2018) Laguna Seca
NorCal Race 2 (Sunday March 11, 2018) Laguna Seca
Wildcats were down a few on this one, with injury, illness, scheduling conflict, and mechanical problem (D’oh, even promising young first time racer Nate Wilson with a new bike can have a chain break in a race!). Sheesh, hoping for a fuller roster in two weeks! Even so, they came to ride, and ride they did. Laguna Seca has beautiful rolling hills, much more climbing than the first race, and of course it includes the infamous Hurl Hill. Sunday morning was sunny and beautiful, a far cry from the mud of a drizzling coastal rain on Saturday’s pre-ride, which required muddy bikes to be hosed down, and riders to spend time in the hot tub (after hosing down themselves as well, of course). On race day, the Harrison and Timboe families - both new to MC MtB racing - stepped up and kept everyone fed and hydrated and comfortable in the team’s pitzone, thank you both! Also, thank you to our Coaching team (Mike M, Mike Y, and Mike V), as well as all parents both veteran and new, for making these race days even possible. You all rock.
In the Sophomore girls category, Katie Shearin was strong from the start, passed her competition on the downhill half way through the second lap, held the lead even over Hurl Hill, and had a huge smile as she crossed the finish line to take third place on the podium, which also places her third overall in the season so far. Lauren Mullin decided partway through her race that she had enough of being threatened by Hurl Hill, and easily cleaned it with a well selected line on her 3rd attempt, which moved her up to finish in seventh, so is now eighth overall. Freshman Angelica Valerio cleared “hurl hill” (a victory for anyone, believe me!) in her race as well. The course challenged her as a new racer, but she was surprisingly fast at the finish. When coach checked in to ask if she was doing ok, she gave a resounding No!, and both had a laugh at that. Way to go Angelica, you keep it up! In the Sophomore boys race, Dillon Solway passed 4 racers on his 3rd climb up hurl hill to again meet his top-ten goal, taking tenth, and is now placed seventh overall in a huge field sixty-one deep. Nathan Wilson was right on Dillon's tail half way through the 1st lap. The boys were looking forward to hammering the race out together, but Nathan's brand new chain snapped and he DNF’d. Chris Timboe also had a very solid race (with no accidents this time!), climbing out of the ravines and navigating the single track of this Laguna Seca course. Our Freshman boys are working on getting their racing legs. Ryan Kelly completed his first race after recovering from injury, good to have you with us Ryan! And Harrison Turner also had a strong race, easily clearing the mythical Hurl Hill on his laps.
When all the tires were done rolling, the MC Wildcats Mountain Biking Team placed eleventh for the day, which actually now places us tenth in our division overall after two races. Top ten?! Way to go, Cats! In the words of coach McGibben, “weather was perfect, dirt was perfect, and venue is unbeatable”. This was the first race this Team Director has missed since my boy (and I, of course) started with this team six years ago, and it feels odd to write this report in absentia. Having such an awesome team to work with makes it easier, for sure. I look forward to joining y’all at the next race, scheduled for Toro Park in Salinas. In the meantime, put the miles on those trails, put the attention into tuning your bikes, and stay healthy Cats!
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